Here are lists of worksheets for groups that are organizing action on Representatives and Senators, or for other purposes. These come from books by Roger Fisher of the Harvard Negotiation Project and various co-writers. The worksheets can show some of the “how -to” stuff better than explanations. The list illustrates some of what’s out there. There is, of course, much overlap. If you want to read about a particular approach in various books, however, the check out the overlaps.

Clearly, as you will see by the end, there’s a lot involved in “specifically what to do.” The length of this post is not meant to be discouraging, but rather to show ways to move ahead quickly, to groups geared up for serious work in the long haul. It’s for those who really want to win.

I recommend starting with the book “Beyond Machiavelli,” but here I will start with “Getting Ready to Negotiate: The Getting to Yes Workbook,” as it has two good, brief introductory worksheets. These are:

Sudden Prep (helps you learn where to start in a hurry)

Priority Prep (I set this out as a checklist on a spreadsheet).

Other worksheets are set out under the “seven elements of negotiation” (in CAPITAL letters). These are:

27 Some Ethical Criteria to Consider Before Making a Proposal 113 1 col

28 How a Future Decision Cold Be Announced (Iran/US) 116 1 col

29 How a Future Decision Cold Be Announced (Iran/US) 117 1 col

30 Political Constraints on Choice (NAFTA) 118 2 col

31 Some Third Party Roles for Coping with a Conflict 124 3 col

32 Currently Perceived Choice (Concession-Hunting Mediator) 127 2 col

33 Currently Perceived Choice (One Text) 128 2 col

34 Currently Perceived Choice (End of One Text) 130 2 col

35 Two Ways of Generating a Draft Proposal 131 2 col

36 Currently Perceived Choice (Beyond Machiavelli Reader) 141 2 col

Bold items are blank workbook charts

underlined items are informational and may be typed with fewer columns

The same applies below to charts from Coping with International Conflict. This seems to be a textbook version of the same kind of material, and is more comprehensive. Numbers on the left border (ie. 4.1) refer to chapters (ie. chapter 4).

Here is a list of 63 action ideas from International Mediation. I set them out as a yes/no checklist on a spreadsheet. Each has explanations in the book. Note that an organizer is a facilitator of negotiation, though not quite like a mediator. These are especially useful for a deeper view, or after they say “no.”

Introduction.

1 How about keeping a working journal? (13)

PART I: THE HUMAN PROBLEM

A. Coping with problems of emotions and motivation.

2 How about discussing a CHART of the problem with each party? (29)

3 How about a session for “letting off steam”? (29)

4 How about giving the parties a joint task? (31)

5 How about building on some common professional training (such as that of military officers or economists)? (32)

6 How about having them work on plans that make an agreed future look more attractive and credible? (32)

7 How about rewarding constructive work with personal credit? (33)

8 How about stimulating symbolic gestures of good feelings? (33)

B. Coping with problems of perception.

9 How about preparing and discussing a CHART of partisan perceptions? (34)

10 How about preparing and discussing some BALANCE SHEETS of each party’s presently perceived choice? (38)

11 How about helping the parties test their expectations against the reality of opposing interest? (42)

12 Might perceptions be helped by informal joint discussion? (43)

13 Might personal accounts help? (44)

“Help me with the facts”

“What’s important?”

“What’s wrong now?”

“Should we divide up?”

“Can this be a joint task?”

C. Coping with problems of communication.

14 How about excluding the public audiences? (47)

15 Might it help to encourage better listening? (49)

16 How about writing what they’re saying and what they’re hearing? (50)

17 Would it help to ask the parties to acknowledge communication received? (56)

18 Would it help communication to have a ground -rule against attributing motives or intentions? (56)

19 How about less communication between the parties? (57)

PART II: THE INVENTING PROBLEM

A. For coping with unawareness of the importance of inventing.

20 How about discussing with the parties a CHART contrasting existing options with better ones? (68)

21 How about LISTING the substantive options currently on the table? (69)

22 How about discussing specific options as an answer to the problem of the slippery slope? (69)

B. For coping with constraints on the inventing process.

23 How about organizing a brainstorming session? (71)

Who?

Where?

When?

Purpose?

Atmosphere?

Ground-rules?

Roles?

A rapporteur?

24 How about brainstorming with the parties separately? (76)

25 How about using outside inventors? (76)

26 How about doing some private inventing yourself? (77)

C. For stimulating invention of more and better options.

27 How about focusing on divergent interests of the parties? (78)

Are there different assessments of the future?

28 How about looking through the eyes of different disciplines? (82)

29 How about looking for solutions that would be principled, durable, and compliance-prone? (84)

30 How about making existing options more operational? (86)

31 How about changing the scope of a proposed agreement? (88)

32 How about inventing procedural solutions to substantive problems? (89)

33 How about inventing agreements of different strengths? (89)

34 How about multiplying options through the use of the CIRCLE CHART? (90)

35 How about looking at the substantive choice each party would face? (93)

PART III: THE PROCEDURAL PROBLEM

A. For making the procedural problems explicit.

36 How about using a simple analogy? (110)

37 How about jointly writing out the operating assumptions of the existing negotiating process? (112)

B. For loosening the parties from their negotiating positions.

38 How about avoiding steps that will tend to commit them more deeply? (113)

39 How about separating the parties interests from their positions? (114)

40 How about making present positions irrelevant to the process? (116)

C. For changing the game that the parties are playing.

(a) So far as the players and their roles are concerned.

41 How about adding a party to the negotiating process? (117)

42 How about going ahead with fewer parties? (118)

43 How about changing the mediator’s role (or the mediator)? (119)

44 How about moving up or down the bureaucratic hierarchy? (121)

(b) So far as the goals of the game are concerned.

45 How about helping each side try to strengthen the moderate tendencies of the other? (123)

46 How about pursuing some new goals? (123)

(c) So far as the standard moves are concerned.

47 How about insisting upon principled negotiations? (124)

48 How about asking for contingent offers? (125)

59 How about leaving positions intact while inventing? (126)

50 How about working with a single negotiating text? (126)

51 How about some middle-level drafting of alternative clauses? (130)

D. For changing the choices faced by each party.

(a) So far as the decision itself is concerned.

52 How about offering them a “yesable proposition?” (132)

53 How about making the decision smaller? (134)

54 How about reducing the number of decisions required? (134)

(b) So far as the balance sheet of pros and cons is concerned.

55 How about changing the domestic political costs and benefits? (135)

56 How about making proposed promises more credible? (137)

57 How about substituting offers for threats? (139)

58 How about making a choice a fading opportunity? (141)

(c) So far as the manner in which the decision is asked for.

59 How about starting low on the asking ladder? (141)

60 How about making suggestions privately first? (143)

61 How about changing the perceived ownership of the idea? (143)

62 How about using CHECK LISTS to stimulate thinking? (144)

63 How about jotting down your own ideas? (144)

Here are other charts from International Mediation:

Chart 1:RELATING THEORY TO PRACTICE: Whose job is it to use theory to produce better answers? (3)

Chart 2:CIRCLE CHART: The Four Basic Steps in Applying Theory to Practice (5)

There are a few more charts in other books by Fisher et al., including:

International Conflict for Beginners, the MAP chart in chapter five (p. 48) is a great overall chart. See the same info as an outline (Demand/Offer/Costs; Who/What/When/Why) in Beyond Machiavelli, ch. 3. See the chapter “Making Threats is Not Enough” and chart here:

http://www.pon.harvard.edu/hnp/writing/books/international3.pdf Fisher’s book Dear Israelis, Dear Arabs: A Working Approach to Peace, is a sort of companion volume to International conflict for Beginners. Though dated, this book illustrates in detail a variety of specific “yesable propositions.” See http://www.pon.harvard.edu/hnp/theory/tools/yesable.shtml and follow the link “concept excercises” there to learn more about this key method. See also Beyond Machiavelli pp. 96-98.

Getting Together, (I make a yes/no checklist (on a spreadsheet) from the questions in “How Good is Our Relationship,” p. 178.)

Getting Past No (William Ury), (has simple Preparation Worksheet in appendix, p. 173). See also his The Third Side (originally Getting to Peace) at http://www.thirdside.org/resources.cfm?language=English. Note however that he does not include the role of organizer as a facilator of negotiation between decision makers and “the people.”

Another useful introduction for using these materials together can be found at:

http://www.pon.harvard.edu/hnp/theory/tools/tools.shtml. This page includes links to Currently Perceived Choice charts (blank and filled out examples) and “the Seven Elements of Negotiation” which serves as the structure for Getting Ready to Negotiate [workbook]. It also gives page numbers for various key Fisher books related to this discussion.

Well, I thought I should get some of this material out there into the discussion. Let’s make it happen.